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65 feared dead, many injured as express train catches fire in Pakistan
The train was bound from Karachi to Rawalpindi, Radio Pakistan reported. The fire was caused by a cylinder blast that occurred in the morning when passengers were preparing their breakfast in the train.
65 people are feared dead on Thursday morning while twice this number are injured from a fire in three bogies of a inter-city train, the Tezgam Express, near Rahimyar Khan in Pakistan.
The train was bound from Karachi to Rawalpindi, Radio Pakistan reported. The fire was caused by a cylinder blast that occurred in the morning when passengers were preparing their breakfast in the train. Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid said that the persons responsbile were part of the Tableegi Jamaat, a religious entity, who were going to Lahore to participate in their annual congregation at Raiwind.
Women and children are among the victims — none of whom have been identified yet. The dead and injured are being shifted to DHQ Hospital in Liaquatpur. Some of the injured have also been shifted to Bahawal Victoria Hospital in Bahawalpur due to their critical condition.
Prime Minister Imran Khan said he was “deeply saddened by the terrible tragedy of the Tezgam train”.
Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari extended “prayers and condolences” to families of the victims of the “terrible Tezgam train tragedy”. In a tweet, Mazari regretted that the “tragedy [...] could have been avoided but ever since I can recall while travelling by train no baggage check or restrictions enforced. Tragic.”
This is the third major train accident that has taken place in the country over the past five months. In July, a train collision in Sadiqabad between passenger train Akbar Express and a freight train had killed more than 20 and injured more than 80 people.
In June, three people were killed when a passenger train, the Jinnah Express, hit a freight car near Hyderabad.
